When is a melon ripe? - That's how you know it

The different types of melons and their signs of ripeness

Not all melon varieties can be recognized equally well as ripe or unripe. This is, of course, easier with melons that you have grown yourself, where the death of the plant parts in late summer or autumn indicates when the fruits are harvested. This complete death of the plant is also the reason why even sweet honeydew melons are scientifically not a fruit, but a vegetable. In the case of many sugar melons such as the honeydew melon and the Charentais melon, the skin does not adequately indicate the state of ripeness. However, you can distinguish the ripe fruits from the unripe ones by their heavier weight. In addition, fully ripe melons give off a slightly sweet, gently perfumed scent and can be easily pressed in with your fingers if you press hard.A clear sign of overripe fruits is when the stem base is brown or black.

Recognize a ripe watermelon

If you want to identify a watermelon as ripe in the garden or in the supermarket, you can rely on a combination of optical and acoustic tests. Ripe fruits of the popular Crimson Sweet and Sugar Baby varieties have a rather muffled sound when lightly hit with the hand. When it comes to the peel color, it depends on the variety whether the green watermelon is covered with web-like, yellowish stripes. However, a yellow spot on the contact point is an unmistakable sign that the fruit was allowed to fully ripen on the plant.

Store ripe melons properly

A ripe melon can be kept at room temperature for about one to three weeks, depending on the type and the exact time of harvest. After that, the following options are possible for storage:

storage in the refrigerator
the freezing
pickling as a spicy vegetable side dish

Tips: Since all melons tend to get mushy when they are frozen and thawed again, this storage method is only suitable for the preparation of smoothies or any other use in pureed form.